West Sixth IPA | West Sixth Brewing Company

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Reviews by JamesMN:

Appearance: Opaque orange, up there with the cloudiest IPAs I have seen. I'm hoping that's indicative of lots of hops. Thin but firm off-white head.

Aroma: Mostly citrusy hops with small flickers of mango and grapefruit. Definitely some malts in here as well, caramel among them.

Taste: Solid bitterness that I almost wasn't expecting. Hits you right away like a punch to the palate and continues on through the end. Lots of good orange citrus hop flavor and some pine. There is enough malt to help balance things out without too much to make itself known. Nice and robust at 7% ABV. Almost juicy at times and finishes dry.

Mouthfeel: Just above medium in body with smooth carbonation. Average drinkability.

Final Thoughts: Overall a good beer and great example of an American IPA. Lots of hop bitterness with just enough malt to give it some body. Would I drink it again? Sure.

More User Reviews:

We crack a pair of cans, pouring into our Great Lake pints glasses. Coloring nears a darker golden at its core, with a peripheral pale lightening of a few shades. It holds a chunky two finger head of soapy but tight khaki bubbles, showing nice retention. Lacing is wispy and thick. A mildly chill haze follows the pour, but no sediment is noted. Carbonation is slow but pervasive. The aroma is comprised of sweet caramel and pale malty dustiness, black pepper, sugary vanilla bean and icing, bright nectary and grassy hoppiness, lemon-poppy seed muffins, apple and wild blueberry skin fruity bitterness, toasted honey oat sweetness, jasmine pollen and musk, butterscotch caramels, and toasted clove spiciness. The flavoring follows in much the same vein, with cotton, soapy laundry detergent, bitter and spicy hops of piney, herbal, and grassy hoppiness, grapefruity skin and zest, crumbly and dried biscuits dusty pale malts, sweaty caramel and crystal graininess, green twig and dandelion weediness, dried mustard seed, spicy ethanol, faint bubblegum esters, and bitter walnut shells. The aftertaste shows an enhanced minty and planty quality that leaves a zing towards the far back palate. The body is solidly medium, and the carbonation is medium. Each sip affords hearty and full slurp and smack, with appropriately concurrent cream and froth as the beer makes its way around the mouth. The mucosa is cooled and dragged down with thick coating, but this gives way to a lightly chalky astringent dryness. The abv is true to style, and drinkability remains nice.

Overall, this is our “climbing” beer, through and through. Although we brought our own cooler full of swill on our inaugural trip to climb the Red River Gorge in Slade, Kentucky, this was recommended as a must-try from the local climbing community. Purchased at what was seemingly a barn, around the corner from where we camped, this got us through many a night on the crag, accompanied of course, by custom Miguel’s pizzas. We enjoyed its company so much, in fact, that we stopped for a few sixers to bring back to Michigan with us. We find a pleasant IPA here; one that is flavorful and honest. The hops show you what it means to be bitter, but allow enough balance from the malts to not overwhelm the palate. If you’re an IPA fan and in the neighborhood, we too, would now recommend this as a local “must-try” at the very least, comparatively.

Picked up a single 12 oz. can of this to try on a recent trip to Kentucky and south western Ohio. Poured into one of my pint glasses, this beer pours a slightly cloudy/hazy medium golden amber color with a very fluffy looking head that is about an inch thick when first poured that settles fairly quickly to a solid 1/5 inch tick head with excellent lacing. Aromas of slightly toasted caramel malts along with resinous, piney, herbal hop notes. The taste is pretty much the same, with some biscuity, slightly toasted, caramel malt sweetness upfront along with some resinous, piney, slightly citrus, herbal, slightly spicy/peppery hop bitterness. A very solid and well balanced flavor profile. The hop bitterness does tend to dominate a bit taste wise I feel. Has a crisp, yet smooth, slightly oily and chewy, medium bodied mouthfeel with moderate carbonation. Has clean finish and bit of a dry aftertaste. A damn solid IPA all around that is certainly worth a try indeed!

This is the third beer I've had from West Sixth and I must say, I am thoroughly impressed! They are now 3 for 3 in my book. They also make an excellent cocoa porter and their imperial stout is among one of my faves!
Onto the review:

Poured from can into pint glass and served cold

Appearance - Very cloudy yellow with an orange hue when held to the light. Generous one and a half finger head that shrinks to about one finger after sitting for a minute but retains very well. Heavy lacing.

Smell - The scent of this brew is very pleasant. Sweet citrus (tangerine?), pine, and dank grass being most prominent.

Taste - The taste is very Piney, wheaty, and most definitely...HOPPY! (does this surprise you?) well it is an IPA, after all! The wheat, hops, pine, and citrus give this beer excellent balance and delicious flavor. Carbonation is moderate and mouthfeel is crisp. Aftertaste is dry, piney, and hoppy.

Overall - Another excellent brew from West Sixth Brewing Co! They have definitely proved themselves in terms of quality and consistency. Looking forward to trying another one of their beers!